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Gerry Morgan, founder and director of Harvard Manufacturing in Newry, Co DownGerry Morgan, founder and director of Harvard Manufacturing in Newry, Co DownGerry Morgan, founder and director of Harvard Manufacturing in Newry, Co Down

Partnering with Concern ‘fitted in with our ethos’

Partnering with Concern ‘fitted in with our ethos’
Story24 June 2025Darren Vaughan

If you are a business owner, partnering with a charity like Concern Worldwide is a fantastic way to emphasise your commitment and responsibility to supporting communities facing crises around the world. 

Long-term supporter Gerry Morgan, who is founder and director of Harvard Manufacturing in Newry, Co Down, is one such business owner. 

His company specialises in refilling and recycling printer cartridges across the UK and Europe as well as leasing out printers. Over the past two decades, he has donated more than £115,000 - an average of £5,000 each year - to Concern’s emergency appeals and development work. As well as that, Harvard has gifted two printers to Concern’s Belfast office and covers ongoing maintenance costs.

‘If I don’t do it now, I’ll never do it’

As a young boy, Gerry always imagined himself being his own boss. But it was not until he went to university to study engineering that his dream became a reality. Like many entrepreneurs, the idea came to him in the form of a panic-driven solution to a problem he faced.

“When I went to print my final year dissertation in university, the secretary told me they didn't have any toner cartridges,” he said. “They were waiting for more than a month for them to be delivered at a cost £150 each. Back in 1989, that was a lot of money.”

“I couldn't believe it. I thought, is there no way they could be refilled? And that is what sparked the interest.”

Gerry was selected to go to America on a student programme for a year to research the business and develop a plan. With the safety net of an open job offer, he decided he had nothing to lose.

“I thought, if I don't do it now, I'll never do it. What’s the worst that could happen if it doesn’t work?” he said.

Gerry checking the printer in Concern's Belfast office.
Gerry checking the printer in Concern's Belfast office. Photo: Darren Vaughan/Concern

Meeting the US President

His year in America had a significant impact on him. It was that deep connection with the place that eventually landed him the rare opportunity of a face-to-face meeting with the US President at the time, Bill Clinton, on a visit to Northern Ireland in the late nineties.

I thought it was a wind-up. But I got to sit around a table with him and talk about my business for a couple of minutes. It was fantastic.

“This guy phoned me up [from the business development agency in NI] and asked if I would be interested in going to meet President Clinton? I thought it was a wind-up,” he said. “But I got to sit around a table with him and talk about my business for a couple of minutes. It was fantastic.”

“After that, I thought I would grow this big multi-million-pound business and sell it off in a couple of years and then start another one and be a serial entrepreneur like Richard Branson. But it hasn't really worked out like that.”

An evolving market

Nonetheless, Gerry’s business has experienced steady growth over the past three decades and now employs three people in a purpose-built warehouse. 

When Gerry looks back to when he first started out, the cartridge refilling landscape was vastly different.

“It was very much a local business where you serviced local customers and picked up their empty cartridges, refilled them and brought them back to them,” he said. “That was how the industry started. But then it developed and has changed dramatically.”

The partnership with a charity made it easy for customers to see tangible benefits.

As the market evolved, customer demand turned to refurbished quality cartridges available off the shelf. For that to happen, the business needed access to large quantities of empty cartridges for stock. That is when the partnership with Concern came about in 2002.

“To incentivise people to save their empty cartridges, instead of putting them in the bin, we approached Concern to partner with us,” he said. “When people donated their used cartridges to us, not only were they helping the environment, we made a donation to Concern.” 

“The partnership with a charity made it easy for customers to see tangible benefits. We were impressed with Concern, how well-managed they were, and how donations went to where they were meant to be spent. When we launched, it went well. The revenue stream we were generating meant that we were able to donate substantially to Concern.”

Gerry Morgan, founder and director of Harvard Manufacturing in Newry, Co Down
Gerry Morgan, founder and director of Harvard Manufacturing. Photo: Darren Vaughan/Concern

An ethos that fits

Today, in what is a competitive market, the business has diversified to sell original cartridges and provide managed printer supplies and maintenance. But with a zero-landfill policy, the recycling side of things is something Gerry is still passionate about. If cartridges cannot be repurposed, they are sent to an approved end-of-life treatment facility with each component separated and recycled.

“My philosophy is that what we’re doing is making a difference, we’re diverting stuff from landfill, we’re repurposing it, we’re closing the loop in terms of sustainability and the partnership with Concern is just the icing on the cake,” he said.

Businesses shouldn’t just be all about making a profit, you’ve got to look at making the world a better place.

“For me, it’s just doing the right thing. And partnering with a charity fitted in with our ethos. Businesses shouldn’t just be all about making a profit, you’ve got to look at making the world a better place.

“We’re a small business but we’re able to do this. Any business no matter the size can do something to help charities like Concern.”

 

If you’re interested in finding out more about a corporate partnership with Concern, there are many ways you can help support our life-saving work, including becoming a Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) appeal partner, staff fundraising, taking part in challenge events, payroll giving, making a one-off gift, or gift-in-kind support.

Please contact Dylan Murdock on our Partnerships Team who will be happy to provide more information: dylan.murdock@concern.net

 

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